US-Led Coalition Sends New Batch of Military Hardware to Syrian Democratic Forces (Photos)4.5555555555556 out of 5 based on 9 ratings. 9 user reviews.

US-Led Coalition Sends New Batch of Military Hardware to Syrian Democratic Forces (Photos)

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The Syrian Democratic Forces have received 200 IAG Guardian armored personnel carriers and a batch of weapons from the US-led coalition.

Photo: Twitter / TAHSAVUNMA

Armed units of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), positioning themselves as fighters against the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group, have for the first time received armored vehicles from the US-led anti-terrorist coalition, the Reuters news agency reported, citing spokesman for the SDF Talal Silo.

According to the news agency’s source, earlier, countries of the US-led coalition also provided military-technical assistance, but it is the first time, when SDF units, consisting of both Arabs and Kurds, are supplied with armored vehicles.

“There are signs of full support from the new American leadership – more than before – for our forces,” Silo told Reuters.

Though, Reuters did not report what kinds of armored vehicles were dispatched to the SDF, social networks’ activists said that the SDF received a batch of IAG Guardian armored personnel carriers, produced in the UAE, and even published some photos of the arrived vehicles.

Other reports of social networks’ activists specified that the US-led coalition supplied 200 armored vehicles, as well as sniper and assault rifles, mortars, heavy machine guns and ATGMs.

SDF units take part in the fight against IS terrorists in the area of Raqqa city, which is considered as the IS capital in Syria. Last autumn, the US-led coalition announced the start of the operation to liberate Raqqa, and then the Pentagon decided to suspend the operation until the spring of 2017.

As Silo told the news agency, the SDF has plans for a “new action” against the IS in “a few days.” However, the SDF spokesman did not disclose any details.

According another unnamed Kurdish military source of Reuters, the SDF plans to take control of a road, connecting Raqqa and Deir er-Zor.

“The coming phase of the campaign aims to isolate Raqqa completely,” the source said. “In order to accomplish this requires reaching the Raqqa-Deir al-Zor road,” he added. “This mission will be difficult.”

If the supply of the armored vehicles to the SDF is the truth, then we can conclude that the administration of US President Donald Trump seriously intends to use various forces, fighting against the IS in Syria. Fundamentally, this corresponds to Trump’s statements about the need to intensify the fight against the IS. Another question is whether the SDF will be ready to disarm, when the IS is defeated in Raqqa.